Rapid-Racer

Welcome to Rapid-Racer, the home for all your performance car tuning knowledge needs and hopefully a useful resource.

We want to help inform you of the different applications in the world of Motor Sport, automotive technologies and give the possible Pro's and Con's around your selection decisions including facts and figures.

We strive to keep the information here up to date and make sure you are aware of the latest Innovations. I hope this site is of interest and I will keep you posted for new articles and features and if you want to get in contact please email: mailto:info@rapid-racer.com

Tyre and Wheels Upgrades:

Car Articles

Super Turbo anybody?

The Lancia Delta S4, a group B Rally car which was in action between 1985 and 1986 was banned due to the cars in the event becoming too dangerous. These Rally cars were deadly quick, with even the most talented drivers having issue controlling them at high speed.

This particular model not only had a Turbo, but also a Supercharger. Producing some 550 BHP (officially), with a Mid mounted engine and 4 wheel drive. This made a devastating machine capable of 0-62 Mph in some 2.6 seconds. The advantages to this system meant instant throttle response with the supercharger, then as the turbo spooled up to speed it took over the boost running off the exhaust gases.

Good Things come in small packages.

1964 the BMC Austin-Morris Mini Cooper showed how a smaller capacity engine car could compete with the likes of larger and more powerful machines like Jaguar. With it's transverse mounted 997 cc engine (first application of it's time) four cylinder BMC A Series, four speed and 55 bhp, made for a great handling package.

This car could be said to have helped shape the way manufacturer's have continued to develop the front wheel drive with more compact designed drivechain layouts, in a aid to increase passenger cabin space.

Credit Crunch Busters of Old!

While a lot of car tuning is geared towards better handling or more bhp, economical might become a trend of the future especially with increases in fossil fuels.

The Greatest distance ever travelled by a vehicle on the standard contents of a 17.5 Gallon fuel tank is 1,338 miles.

The frugal Audi 100 TDi car's engine was driven between John O'Groats to Lands End, in Great Britain. This amazing trek was completed there and back again, between 26th-28th of July 1992.

It highlights the advantages of Diesel fuel, which actually boost some 15% more energy potential for the same volume compared to regular petrol. This is partly due to the denser molecular structure of the fuel, this combined with Diesel's more energy efficient fuel to power conversion, makes for one frugal system.

This McLaren F1 road car has a Innovative three seat layout, with the driver adopting a fighter pilot style centralised seat at the front of the cabin.

One of the all time greatest machines to come out of the 1990's and a design masterpiece. The goal was clear with thin Gordon Murray's designed Ultracar. Even the engine uses Gold plated elements in the structure to get the best heat transfer properties.

McLaren is based in Woking, Surrey. With a strong background in F1 Motor racing also the home of the McLaren SLR and new MP4-12.

Ford Escort is the quickest.

The fastest time recorded for removing a car's engine and replacing it, was 42 seconds for a Ford Escort, on 21st of November 1985.

If only your local Automotive garage completed maintenance this quick, we would save huge amounts on labour costs.

Look at the legendary Suzuki Escudo Pikes Peak Version below. based loosely on the Suzuki Vitara to the left, this monster of a car was designed to be be driven up Mountains and boasted some 987 BHP in it's engine to help overcome the high altitudes.

With huge wings and aerodynamics aids to help generate positive downforce to keep this beast on the trial and not take of like on the Playstation games. This is Race engineering to the extreme.

It certainly is a formidable looking machine and is a testament to function over form. By using a light weight spaceframe and 4 wheel drive drivechain system, weight was kept to a minium and traction to the maximum. Making this one of the maddest machines around.

Win the lottery and you could afford to run one of these.

This dragster has a engine called the 500-inch Hemi, making more horsepower in it's engine than the first 8 rows of the Daytona starting grid.

Under full throttle, this monster dragster's engine consumes 1 1/2 gallons of nitro per second.

This car's engine is the same rate of fuel consumption as a fully loaded 747 Plane, but with 4 times the energy volume. Even the supercharger takes more power to drive then a stock Hemi engine makes in normal running conditions.machines around.

Ford Motorsport Legacy of the 80's and 90's.

The Sierra Cosworth RS500, maybe a 80's school boy's fantasy and is still a testament of what a focused, goal driven Blue Oval can achieve. The GT40 was made to destroy it's competition (Ferrari), much like this icon did in Touring Cars.

The four cylinder 2.0 litre turbo charged power plant produced some 500 BHP. Actually built by Aston Martin Tickford, this race Homologated special had the BMW M3 in it's sights. But sadly the 1991 British Touring Car regulation changes signalled the competitive retirement of this proud athlete.

World's Greatest Production Cars

Read what they are and what makes them stand out from the rest of the competition.

1.Bugatti Veyron (2004).

252.2 MPH and 1001 BHP engine.

2.Koenigsegg CCX (2006).

250 MPH and 900 BHP engine.

3. Saleen S7 (2005)

248 MPH and 750 BHP engine.

4. McLaren F1 (1994).

240.14 MPH and 620 BHP engine.

5. Ferrari Enzo (2002).

217 MPH and 657 BHP engine.

6.Jaguar XJ220 (1992).

217 MPH and 549 BHP engine.

7.Pagani Zonda (1999).

225 MPH and 602 BHP engine.

8.Lamborghini Murcielago (2002)

213 MPH and 633 BHP engine.

9.Porsche Carrera GT (2004).

209 MPH and 605 BHP engine.

10.McLaren SLR (2005).

207 MPH and 626 BHP engine.

High Speed Police Pursuit.

The first Police patrol cars owned by the British Metropolitan Police were so slow, it may of been better to issue them with a horse. They couldn't even break the 20 mph speed limit, but have a look at the following Police Interceptors and see what the Crooks are up against on a Global Scale.

Lamborghini Murcielago LP640.

Italian design combined with German engineering will give a unfair advantage to any games of cops and robbers.

TechArt Porsche 997.

Over confident car thieves which steal a 911 will have a surprise waiting for them if they come across this high performance Police Porsche.

Nissan Skyline R34 V Spec II.

The legendary Nissan Skyline GTR is standard issue for high speed pursuit squads (lucky devils), I bet they can't wait for the new GTR's to arrive.

Lotus Esprit S4.

If it was good enough for James Bond, then why not for the UK Police Forces. I don't think it will go under water like Bond's in the movie, maybe a future upgrade considering the amount rain in the UK.